Often great writers vividly explain the environments in which they were brought up. They describe the joy of revisiting their homes and how they remember the influence of certain prominent trees and many other details in the landscape.
In contrast to us in Eastern Europe now, our lives are passing mainly in 150 to 250 m2 spaces with adequate natural light, but no real connection to the landscape. And on top of that our apartment buildings are not even able to exist more than 40 to 50 years, thanks to urban renewal projects. Old Buildings are mercilessly demolished to be replaced by crappier but more high-tech versions of them. Leaving us with no memories to look back to.
How can we build on our traditions if we constantly start from scratch by destroying our memories for the sake of making a profit?
Eventhough I am probably the biggiest critic of Adana buildings, what if these funny apartment buildings are actually going to be of intellectual value 300 years from now? And who knows, what if architects who used to live in ancient Rome at the time also complained about their built environments and now our generation looks at this city with great admiration?
I think all buildings must be repaired and preserved instead of being demolished regardless of architectural virtue, so that we can at least preserve our memories.
Şahin K. Arıkoğlu 